QUICK TAKE: New Zealanders and The Kiwi

“Kiwi” became THE nickname for New Zealanders and the national symbol of the country thanks to… Kiwi shoe polish.

Kiwi Polish

At the start of the 20th century, there were several nicknames and symbols for New Zealanders, none of them dominant. Among others, symbols included the moa (another bird), the silver fern (the symbol of many New Zealand sports teams, including the famous All Blacks rugby team), the kiwi bird and the Southern Cross constellation, which is still on the New Zealand flag:

New Zealand flag

In 1906 an Australian named William Ramsay developed the shoe polish, which he named after his New Zealander wife, Annie Elizabeth Meek. There were other shoe polishes on the market, but Ramsay’s was one of the first to emphasize making shoes and boots shine, in addition to restoring their color and water-resistance.

Ramsay loaded several cases of the polish onto a cart and traveled to farms handing out free tins to farmers for their work boots. Kiwi rapidly became the best-selling shoe polish brand in Australia. But Kiwi’s big break came in World War I, when the British and American armies started distributing the polish to soldiers. Millions of men became familiar with not just the product, but the “Kiwi” name, too. Soon, everyone was calling New Zealanders “Kiwis”.

Today Kiwi shoe polish is sold in 180 countries and holds 53% of the worldwide market for shoe polish. But even more than that, it’s the only product to give a nation’s citizens their nickname!

SIMON’S PICKS – DIVISIONAL ROUND

SimonHey everybody! Simon here! Gosh, I know these picks are SO LATE, but you’ll have to forgive Simon… he was entertaining some guests from out of town – Tot ziens, y’all! I went 2-2 last week, but I have a really good feeling about this week. Enjoy the picks, y’all!

 


Baltimore at Denver:
Well, Ray-ray’s career will come to an end, this afternoon. I’ve been saying that the Ratbirds are overrated, and perhaps I looked a bit foolish last week with their takedown of the Colts. But rest assured, readers: ain’t no way the ‘Birds beat the Broncos today. Not in Denver. Not with Joe Flacco as QB. And even if it’s Ray-Ray’s last time to shine. Simon’s put all his Tender Vittles on the horses in this game, 35-17.

Green Bay at San Francisco: Now this should be a good game, sugah! If this game had happened a few weeks ago, everyone and their cute lil’ cousin would have picked the 49ers to win it easily. And rightfully so. But those handsome mens from Green Bay – especially Aaron Rodgers and Jordy Nelson – are coming on strong here in the stretch, girlfriend! This game is just a complete tosser toss-up that Simon can’t decide! If Simon was going to bet his own money on it, he’d probably bet on the Packers. But since he isn’t – and because it’s hard to beat the 49ers at home – he’s going to go with the 49ers to win in a squeaker, 28-24.

Seattle at Atlanta: This is do or die time for the Falcons… and not just because it’s the playoffs. The past couple of seasons the team has whined about not getting “respect” from the media and fans. They’ve run up a record of 56-24 since 2008, but haven’t won a playoff game during that time. Well, here’s your chance, handsome mens! Knock Seattle out, and those demons go away, at least for a little while. And I think that’s what will happen: sexy Matt Ice will stay cool enough to get the job done. It’ll be much closer than most Falcons fans would like, though: 24-21

Houston at New England: Well, this is easy: take Tom Terrific and company all the way. The Simon’s thinking a Patriots blowout along the lines of 38-17.

Enjoy the picks! See y’all next week!

XOXOXOXOXOXO

The Simon!

SIMON’S PICKS – WILD CARD ROUND

SimonHey y’all! Simon here with my picks for Wild Card weekend… and here’s hoping it’s WILD! For the record, the Football Feline went 12-4 last week to end the season with the perfectly respectable score of 171-84. Yaaaaa me! Let’s see how I do in the first week of the playoffs! Have fun, y’all!

 

 

Cincinnati at Houston: You know, Vegas money is leaning towards the Texans. And why not? On paper, the Texans should beat the tar outta the Bengals. But Simon has watched the last few weeks of football pretty closely, and the Texans are losing momentum while the Kitties are peaking at just the right time. It’s possible that Arian Foster and that hannnnndddsoooomme Andre Johnson will show up for this game, but Simon is not convinced. Y’all, the Texans had the #1 seed all but locked up, but lost their last three games by a total of 45 points. The Bengals meanwhile… well, that Andy Dalton is still ugly… but I say AJ Green and BenJarvus Green-Ellis (isn’t that just the best name EVER?) will walk all over the cowmens! Take the Bengals to win, 28-17.

Minnesota at Green Bay: Wait… didn’t these two teams play last week? They did? I thought so! The Vikes pulled out a win at home last week… but since it’s win or go home time, and since they’re playing at Lambeau this week, all bets are off! Simon would just love it if that lil’ Adrian Peterson ran for 300 yards in this game, but he’s not sure it’ll happen. But if that hunky lil’ Christian Ponder plays as well as he has for the past couple of games, it’s all in the air! I still think the Packers win this one, but it’ll be close: 35-34.

Indianapolis at Baltimore: Andrew Luck?? Simon’s looking for yooooouuuu! And so is a good chunk of football fandom. If this were a “regular” playoff game, I’d look at how the teams have been performing lately. And there all signs would point to a Colts victory over the Ratbrids. I’m not saying this as a “bitter Steelers fan”, but let’s face it, folks: the Ravens simply aren’t as good as many think. They lost to the Eagles, barely beat the Patriots (in week 2, before the Pats got their act together), barely beat the Browns (twice), barely beat the Chiefs and Cowboys, got their ass handed to them by the Texans in week 7, barely beat the Steelers and Chargers in weeks 11 and 12, lost to the Charlie Batch Steelers at home in week 13, then lost to the Deadskins (barely) and the Broncos (badly). They then beat the Giants 33-14, the only impressive win of the season. Then, in week 17 they lost 23-17 to the same Bengals they beat 44-13 in week 1. Having said that, this could be Ray Lewis’ last game (‘Sup, Killah?). Ther’e no accounting for “mojo”, and it’s possible that Bawlmer could come out and kick Indy’s ass. But I’m thinking upset. I’m taking the Colts in a thrillah, 24-23.

Seattle at Washington: Wow… it’s the BATTLE OF THE SEXAY! Russell Wilson vs. Robert Griffin III. Oh my! I’ll need a cold shower after this game is over! I like RGB3, and I think the Deadskins will be OK for the next couple of years. But the Seachickens have been UNSTOPPABLE the past few games. I say the Seahawks win this game 21-10!

Enjoy the picks! See y’all next week!

XOXOXOXOXOXO

– Simon

Quote of the Day

“You weren’t anything to him but something that would grow big enough to bury him when the time came, and now that he’s dead, he’s shut of you but you got two hundred pounds of him to carry below the face of the earth.”

– Flannery O’Connor
“You Can’t Be Any Poorer Than Dead”

SIMON’S PICKS – WEEK 17

SimonOh my gosh, y’all! Better late than never, no? This week’s games start in less than 12 hours! I hope y’all will forgive me – I have just lost ALL sense of time with these holidays! I went 11-5 yet again last week, and am 159-80 for the season. Let’s see how I do in the final week of the regular season!

 

Tampa Bay at Atlanta: Will the Durty Birds play to win now that they have the #1 seed? I think so – take the Falcons!

New York Jets at Buffalo: Who cares? Take the Bills, if you must.

Baltimore at Cincinnati: Take the Tigers in my Upset of the Week™! The Bengals will win this one by 4 or more.

Chicago at Detroit: As banged up as the Bears are, I’ll take them over the Lions.

Jacksonville at Tennessee: Once again… who cares? Take the Titans.

Houston at Indianapolis: This will be a much better game than it looked in August, but I’ll still take the Texans.

Carolina at New Orleans: Oh Cam… this one is going to hurt. Take the Saints!

Philadelphia at New York Giants: The Iggles collapse is complete. Take the Giants!

Cleveland at Pittsburgh: Sigh. What a waste. Take the Steelers. Maybe.

Kansas City at Denver: Talk about cannon fodder… take the Broncos!

Green Bay at Minnesota: Yawn. Sorry it’s late: take the Packers!

Miami at New England: Sorry, Grandpa Jack. The Patriots will destroy the Fins.

Oakland at San Diego: Only fun if you want to see Norv’s last game with the Chargers, who will probably win.

Arizona at San Francisco: Take the 49ers, duh!

St. Louis at Seattle: The way the Seahawks are playing, I’m not sure who could beat them!

Dallas at Washington: I’ll never say this again: GO REDSKINS!

 

Enjoy the picks, y’all! See you for the playoffs!

XOXOXOXOXO

Simon.

SIMON’S PICKS – WEEK 16

SimonJingle jingle, y’all! Simon here! Christmas is almost upon us, and I hope my gift to you is a list of puuuurfect picks! I went 11-5 again last week, for a total of 148-75 for the season. Let’s ho-ho-hope I can knock it out of the park this week! Y’all have a great Christmas! See y’all next week!

 
Atlanta at Detroit: Will Simon get his Christmas wish of seeing Calvin Johnson’s johnson? Probably not. But them Durty Birds will come to town and do a number on the Lions, honey! Take the Falcons!

New Orleans at Dallas: Although the Cowgirls beat the Steelers last week in OT, they didn’t look all that great against Pittsburgh’s fifth-string defenders (seriously, did you know any of those handsome mens the Steelers had on the field in the second half?). Sexy Drew Brees and that handsome Marques Colston will shred the Cowboys! Take the Aints!

Tennessee at Green Bay: Go green! Again! Take the Packers!

Indianapolis at Kansas City: Andrew Luuuuucccckk? Simon’s looking for yooooouuu! Don’t worry about this game, Colts fans: the last time a quarterback drafted by Kansas City won a game was 1987. Astsonishing, ain’t it? Take the Colts!

Buffalo at Miami: I like my South Beach mens in this game. Know why? Those Buffalo Boys are going to be too busy sippin’ Mai Tais on the beach to concentrate on the game! All those glistening bodies on the beach… I should check Expedia! Take the Dolphins!

San Diego at New York Jets: Wow… I’m sure this looked like an awesome game back in August. But just look at it now! Both the Jets and the Chargers are racing to see which team can implode first. And Dirty Sanchez will enjoy his last few weeks as a Jet. San Diego usually doesn’t play that well on the east coast, so take the Jets to eke out a win!

Washington at Philadelphia: I’m not sure what sport the Iggles are playing. With or without RG3 (“HEY HANDSOME!”), the Skins will win! Take the Redskins!

Cincinnati at Pittsburgh: Oh boy! Better tread carefully here! This is just about win or go home time for the Steelers, and they’re facing two teams at home that they’ve historically dominated. I want to pick the Steelers, especially with their backs to the wall like this. Having said that, the Kitties will keep it uncomfortably close. Like 16-13 close.

St. Louis at Tampa Bay: There’s a joke here somewhere about pirates and sheep… but it’ll be NO JOKE when the teams take the field: The Buccaneers will run all over the Rams (like, literally, honey! Doug Martin, I’ve got my eye on youuuu!).

Oakland at Carolina: Yawn. I love ya Cam, Jonathan and Steve.. but don’t make me watch your boring brand of football! When is Rivera gonna be fired? Is that in two weeks? Or three weeks? Having said all that, I’m picking the hometown kitties to win this one big! Take the Panthers, baby!

New England at Jacksonville: “And, like lambs to the slaughter, the Jacksonville Jaguars take the field!”. Take the Patriots to win… by at least 21 points!

Minnesota at Houston: If the handsome Cowmens can stop that slinky Adrian “What injury?” Peterson, then the game’s over. And I think they’re up to the task. Take the Texans!

Cleveland at Denver: The Simon has been defending the Browns all season long, calling them the “most dangerous 5-9 team in the league”. Well, I haven’t called them a “5-9” team all season long, ‘cos that would be silly. It would change week to week, like “most dangerous 5-8” team last week, or “most dangerous 4-7” team. You know what I’m sayin’, right? Oh dear… I’ve gotten off on a tangent again, haven’t I? We can edit that out later, right, Daddy? [Editor’s Note: No.] Hmmmph! Fine! Anyhoo, as dangerous as the Browns are, there’s NO WAY they beat the Broncos at home. No way at all.

Chicago at Arizona: Hey y’all! Let’s talk hot dogs! Ever have one of those ridiculous Chicago dawgs with the neon green relish and the tomatoes and the pickle spear? How about Sonora hot dogs, which are wrapped in bacon (yummy to Simon’s tummy!) and then covered in beans, grilled onions, fresh onions, tomatoes, mayo, cream sauce (I won’t even ASK about that!), mustard and Jalapeno salsa. What’s wrong with these people? Why can’t they eat hot dogs the New York Way, which is what God intended? Anyway, in the Duel of the Dogs, I say take the Bears to win, and win big. Like a “statement” kind of win.

New York Jets at Baltimore: My daddy says if the Steelers can’t win the AFC North, he sure as hell doesn’t want the Ratbirds to win! I don’t know if the Giants have the mojo to pull off in win in Bawlmer, but it would be delicious if they did. So I’m gonna take the Giants, although I think the Ravens will, in the end, squeak out a win.

San Francisco at Seattle: Whoever would have thought an NFC West game would be the Beatdown of the Week? Yet, here we are: this Sunday Night Football match-up should be the best game on TV this weekend, and The Simon doesn’t know who to pick! It’s SO HARD (heh) to win in Seattle thanks to all those hyped up latté sippers… but the 49ers are pretty much bad ass at this point. So I will represent my buddies in the gay community at pick the 49ers.Stay fabulous, y’all!

Again, Simon hopes y’all have a merry lil’ Christmas! See y’all next week!

XOXOXOXO

Simon

(More) Music of 2012

According to Last.fm, here are my top bands of 2012. The number in parenthesis is the number of times I’ve played the band in the past 12 months:

#1: Marsheaux (1,041)
#2: Saint Etienne (353)
#3: The Raveonettes (280)
#4: Ambra Red (278)
#5: Washed Out (165)
#6: Katy Perry (149)
#7: Roxy Music (142)
#8: Beach House (138)
#9: Freezepop (97)
#10: Blouse (96)

And here are my top albums by playcount in 2012. Note that unlike my Albums of the Year list (which was limited to albums released in 2012), the following albums may come from any year. The first number in parenthesis is the year the album was released; the second is the playcount:

#1: Marsheaux – Lumineux Noir (2009) (494)
#2: Ambra Red – Electronic Creations For Special People (2010) (277)
#3: Saint Etienne – Words and Music by Saint Etienne (2012) (227)
#4: Marsheaux – E-Bay Queen Is Dead (2012) (175)
#5: Beach House – Bloom (2012) (133)
#6: The Raveonettes – Observator (2012) (113)
#7: Marsheaux – Peek a Boo (2006) (91)
#8: Marsheaux – E-Bay Queen (2004) (84)
#9: Washed Out – Within and Without (2011) (80)
#10: Freezepop – Future Future Future Perfect (2007) (79)

SIMON’S PICKS – WEEK 15

SimonHey, y’all! Simon here! Well, I went 11-5 AGAIN last week, and am 137-70 for the season. And I’m actually busy planning some festive holiday brunches this week and have no time to do my regular full picks. Sorry ’bout that! Here’s a list of my picks, though, just so you can use them if you need ’em! 

 

Cincinnati at Philadelphia: Kitties always beat birds! Take the Bengals!

New York Giants at Atlanta: Apparently giants can beats birds, too. Take the Giants!

Green Bay at Chicago: Go green! Take the Packers!

Washington at Cleveland: The Skins will win! Take the Redskins!

Minnesota at St. Louis: I like Vikes on spikes! Take the Vikings!

Jacksonville at Miami: Kitties are smart… but not smarter Dolphins!

Tampa Bay at New Orleans: I guess you can put the ‘S’ back in front of their name: take the Saints!

Denver at Baltimore: Peyton goes bird hunting, highlights at 11! Take the Broncos!

Indianapolis at Houston: It’s hard to beat the Texans at home. Take the Texans!

Seattle at Buffalo: I don’t know how a bird would take down a bison, but it’s happening. Take the Seahawks!

Detroit at Arizona: The last nail in the Whiz’s coffin! Take the Lions!

Carolina at San Diego: Norv’s on the way out, but they’ll take out the Panthers! Take the Chargers!

Pittsburgh at Dallas: This depends on which two teams show up. I’ll take the Steelers, because they have Liverpool Syndrome*, but wouldn’t be surprised if the Cowboys won, either.

Kansas City at Oakland: Yaaaaaar! Take the Raiders to win this one!

San Francisco at New England: Wow! Good game! Take the Patriots at home, though.

New York Jets at Tennessee: The Monday Night Football game no one will watch. Take the Titans.

* – For the past several years, the Liverpool Football Club has played well against quality opponents like Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United. But they’ve really struggled against mediocre opponents like Queen’s Park Rangers. Does that sound familiar, Steelers fans?

Hope y’all enjoy the picks!

XOXOXOXO

Simon

The Year in TV (2012)

2011 was a great year for TV. 2012?  Not so much. The first half was pretty decent, but the second half of the year was pretty much a strike-out. So while 2011’s list was a lot of work (because I had to whittle down a huge list to acceptable levels), 2012’s list was also a lot of work (because it was that hard coming up with a list of decent new shows).

And so… the list, keeping in mind that this is all about new shows, not returning ones. There’s also lists of shows that didn’t make it, shows that ended this year, the biggest disappointment of the year, the best news of the year and the best and worst moments of the year. Enjoy!


THE BEST NEW SHOWS OF 2012

Don’t Trust the Bitch in Apartment 23 (ABC) – The premise of this show is simple: June, a naive and trusting Indianan, moves to New York City after graduating college to pursue her dream career. But on her first day the CEO of her mortgage company is arrested for running a Ponzi scheme. Desperate, June becomes the roommate of Chloe McGruff (Krysten Ritter), an amoral scam artist, a swindler and party girl. Chloe is the worst person ever, and is only genuinely nice to her best friend, former Dawson’s Creek actor James Van Der Beek. Unfortunately, the ratings aren’t very good, the writing has taken a turn for the worse in season 2, and ABC is monkeying around with the episode order. I don’t expect it to last much longer.

apt_23

Line of Duty (BBC) – Every year the BBC puts out a really dark police drama in which the police aren’t necessarily any better than the people they’re chasing. Be it my personal fave Luther or last year’s favorite The Shadow Line, there’s always some show about the dark side of police work. This year’s entry is Line of Duty, in which the young, idealistic Detective Sergeant Steve Arnott (Martin Compston) accidentally causes the death of an innocent man during an anti-terrorist raid. Arnott refuses to participate in a cover-up of the incident, and is ruthlessly ostracized by his colleagues for it. To get away from them he joins an internal affairs division led by Superintendent Ted Hastings (Adrian Dunbar). Hastings’ main target is Detective Chief Inspector Tony Gates (the great Lennie James). Gates’ unit consistently has huge arrest numbers, and Hastings knows that this is partly because Gates only takes on cases he knows he can solve, then piles tons of charges on criminals once caught. But Hastings suspects the corruption is far worse. Although family man Gates might not want to admit it, he has a mistress, and she just might get him in a world of trouble.

line_of_duty

Copper (BBC America) – And speaking of dark police dramas, BBC America debuted its first original series, Copper, about Kevin “Corky” Corcoran (Tom Weston-Jones), a rough and tumble Irish cop in 1860s New York City, specifically the notorious, crime and poverty ridden Five Points neighborhood. Like a lot of men at the time, Corky went away to fight the Confederates in the Civil War, and while he was away his wife and daughter were murdered. Much of the series is about his investigation into what happened to them. He’s helped by Robert Morehouse (Kyle Schmid) a wealthy industrialist who was his major in the Union Army, Eva Heissen (Franka Potente), a Prussian madam who knows a lot of secrets, and Dr. Matthew Freeman (Ato Essandoh), a black physician who seems to know more about forensic science than any other doctor in America at the time (one of my small beefs about the show). Many disliked the show, saying it was too slow, and the fact that it was set in a time-frame similar to the slightly more popular Hell On Wheels didn’t help. But if you stick with it, you’ll be rewarded. It’s a well-done series with rich characters and well thought-out stories.

Copper

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